If you’re learning how to DJ at the Denver DJ School, you’ve probably been told at some point by the OG’s to “watch your gains” or “stay out of the red” but what does the gain knob actually do, and why does it matter?
At first, gain can seem like just another volume knob. Turn it up and the song gets louder. Turn it down and the song gets quieter. Simple enough right?
The gain knob controls the level of the audio signal coming into an individual channel on your mixer or DJ controller.
Not every song is mastered at exactly the same volume. You might load one song that is naturally pretty loud and then load another that is noticeably quieter. If you mix them without adjusting anything even with auto-gain, the crowd could hear a sudden drop or jump in volume and that is a big no no.
That’s where gain comes in.
You can use the gain knob to balance the levels of your tracks before mixing them together.
This is where things can get confusing because all three can make something louder or quieter, the gain, channel fader, and master volume.
Think about it like this, gain or trim dictates the level of signal coming into the mixer for that channel, the channel fader is how you decide how much of that signal you are going to let out and the master volume controls the total level of signal from all channels that leaves the main output.
Now let's talk about redlining.
Take a look at the level meters on your DJ controller or mixer while a song is playing. You’ll normally see the meter move through different sections as the music gets louder.
When your signal is constantly reaching the very top of the meter and into the red, you’re redlining. A common beginner mistake is thinking, “If I turn my gain up more, my set will sound bigger and louder!” But louder isn’t always better. Pushing your levels too hard can cause clipping and distortion. Instead of getting clean, powerful audio, you can end up making the music sound harsh or distorted.
If you cannot produce the level of sound you want at the best quality, buying/renting speakers (at the Denver DJ School) might be your next step.
To conclude, you could have a perfectly beatmatched transition, but if the incoming song is way louder than the previous one, that transition can still sound rough.
Learning what these specific knobs and faders actually do is a huge benefit in real world scenarios where maybe you're redlining or not getting the most of your speakers and need to adjust fast.